Lab Grown Diamonds: All Roads Lead to Paris
January 19, 23 by Marty HurwitzIn the early 20th century Paris was the center of the world for artistic creativity. Today Paris is becoming the creative center for upmarket, lab-grown diamond, fine jewelry style. At one time the names Duchamp, Chagall, Matisse, Hemingway, and Picasso Read More...
Today's Memo, Written by AI
January 12, 23 by John JeffayArtificial intelligence is everywhere. It controls what we see on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and beyond. It decides what adverts we're shown online, what Netflix recommends, based on our viewing preferences, how we get places (Waze, Google maps)... Read More...
Crystal Gazing Into 2023
January 05, 23 by Pranay NarvekarThe beginning of every year brings about a flurry of planning activities as companies and individuals set their targets for the year. While we do so, it is wise to review what happened in the previous year, as we begin to make plans for the future... Read More...
The Day That Changed Everything
December 22, 22 by John Jeffay"Record prices", "very strong market", "positive sentiment", "soaring consumer demand". Remember those phrases? That's the way the world looked the last time we welcomed a New Year. How things have changed. One word that had barely appeared in the... Read More...
Curious Tale of the "Spiritually Cleansed" Diamond
December 15, 22 by John JeffayIt's one thing when one of the world's most valuable diamonds is mysteriously pulled from auction. It's quite another when it turns out the reason is an allegation that the 13.15-carat fancy vivid pink gem had been sent from Qatar to the USA, to be "spiritually cleansed"... Read More...
Could De Beers be Offered for Sale?
December 08, 22 by Erez RivlinAnglo American owns 85% of De Beers and Botswana owns the remaining 15%. It is the seventh largest mining company in the world and in 2021 it made a staggering profit (EBIDTA) of $20.6 billion (more than double 2020). But De Beers' diamonds contributed... Read More...
The Watchmaster Heist
December 01, 22 by John JeffayIt's a heist that could prove to be bigger than the Hatton Garden safe deposit raid in 2015. Raiders managed to get through a 1.75-meter thick steel door at a vault in Berlin, crack the security codes and overcome a fog alarm. They escaped with 1,000 luxury watches... Read More...
Diving for Diamonds
November 23, 22 by John JeffayIt's all about responsible sourcing. That's what consumers want, and that's what they're getting with "diver diamonds". In terms of global output, they may be a drop in the ocean, but diamonds recovered by divers from converted fishing boats, in the shallow waters ... Read More...
No Easy Answers
November 17, 22 by John JeffayThree stories in the diamond world particularly took my interest this week. I'll come to the details in a moment, but first, allow me a moment to digress briefly and provide a little context. There was a newspaper quiz that became something of a Saturday highlight for us... Read More...
Conflict Diamonds: A Time for Change
November 10, 22 by John JeffayRussia invaded Ukraine on 24 February. The USA announced sanctions against its biggest diamond producer, Alrosa, on 25 February. The Kimberley Process formally resolved on 5 November that it would set up an ad hoc committee to oversee Read More...
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